Once you've seen the Tower of Big Ben, the Tower of London, taken a ride on the London Eye, visited Buckingham Palace and Madame Tussaud's Wax Museum, caught a red double-decker bus, and taken a freezing-cold cruise on the Thames, you've pretty much ticked off the tourist traps. Now it's time to live a little more like a local.
Weather
For a start, you're going to have to lose the tan. The jokes about London weather are, well, no joke. If you do happen to get a clear sunny day, be grateful and take an umbrella anyway - it won't last.
Things to See and Do
Next, spend an afternoon at the dogtrack. It's like horse-racing, but for poor folks (or at least that's the common perception). If you don't like to gamble, or you don't like dogs, huddle with the other grumbling punters in one of the many trackside pubs and stare morosely into your pint. By the way, the English don't really drink their beer warm, it's just because a pint glass is so big that the beer doesn't stand a chance of staying cold.
There are plenty of walking tours in London, and it's hard to find a bad one. The ones who are registered and accredited by the London Tourist Board will be wearing their (hard-won) blue badges for easy identification. The Jack the Ripper tour is a good one if you like the macabre, but there's something to please everyone. For slightly off-the-beaten path tours, try one of the unofficial ones: Being meandered through back alleys by a dodgy illegal immigrant is actually kind of fun. Support the entrepreneurship and hold on tightly to your wallet.
Entertainment
Being in London on a budget can curtail your nightlife opportunities: Clubs are expensive to get into and even more expensive to drink in. If you are anywhere near college age, this is when you should walk on over to one of the (many) universities in the London area. This is a young person's town and the universities are jam-packed with organized parties, trips and underground events. Some only permit students to attend, but most are happy to welcome outsiders. These events are always cheap, and almost always worth checking out.
Off the Beaten Path
If you can stand the cold, go ice-skating at Somerset House. The kids will love it, especially the parts where they get to watch Mom and Dad fall over. As punishment, send them up the ice-climb – The eight metre high mini-glacier might satisfy their inner explorer.
The hub of the international time standard, Greenwich, is like a country of its own. You could spend your entire vacation here and feel satisfied. The best way to get there is to take a boat (you can drive or catch the Tube, but a boat is so much more civilized). From Westminster pier it's an hour's ride to Greenwich.
Greenwich is home to the famous sailing ship Cutty Sark, the Old Royal Naval College, Trinity Music College, the Painted Hall (by the fabulous Christopher Wren) and the Chapel (also by Wren), which hosts the Trinity College performances on the first Sunday of each month. Nighttimes in Greenwich mean seeing the laser that points out along the Prime Meridian. The actual location of the Prime Meridian was hotly debated in it's time, and thanks to a slight error by the building engineers, the windows in the astronomy building didn't face any of them. This meant that all the astronomers were forced to work outside in the snow.
Hotels
Hotel prices vary wildly in London – although all of them reflect the popularity of the city. It is worth spending a little extra, as a room without heat in London is a miserable experience. Depending on the power of the dollar against the pound, budget for around $300 a night – sleeps up to four.
Use the Hotelsio Rate Finder to find top accommodation and cheap hotels in London.
(Photo:Fotolia/Pepo)
